Hi. Just picked up my Trumpeter K 5 E today at the local hobby store and it is neat. Been looking over the instructions, (all 44 pages of them), and am pretty well satisfied with my choice over the Dragon kit. With over 400+ more parts that the Dragon model it is going to be definitely a more detailed build to do. But a pleasure just the same. But that's okay. This particlar model of the K5E kit has a T-section track that you can build for it too, so it can be built in a firing position other than just the straight in-line. (As trying to figure out just where to put the completeled model in the standard straight-on position wasn't enough to try to figure out, now I must do the T-section because it's there.)
Each railway truck is a kit to its ownself, not to mention the main carriage and gun. This is definitely not a kit that one can build in a week or two or even a month or two for that matter, as there is much research to do on just about everthing, esp. as far as deciding what sub-assemblies to keep separate for painting (not to mention the possibility of any real cool after-market parts to come out later on. Although I really can't see how anybody could improve on this kit, other than the aluminum barrel).
The R.R. ballast and separate tracks are also very well represented and will be quite something for all modelers who build this kit to do the basic washes and weathering details on, depending on just what type/kind of ballast they wish to show (granite, volcanic, bits of coal, etc.). Going to do mine in the old colorings I used to see in southeast Ohio that had lots of a 'salt and pepper' color to it that I remember.
Now my biggest problem will to keep my hands off of it till I can get one or two other models done and out of the way, not to mention a host of other projects that have to be done before the on-set of winter. Ha. Decisions, decisions..........
Take care, sgirty
Stormin' 
